A wireless mesh network includes wireless access points (APs) connected to each other through a hierarchical parent-child network of wireless backhaul links to form a mesh tree. The wireless backhaul links comprise radio frequency (RF) channels (e.g., 5 Gigahertz channels) defined in a regulation or standard. Typically, the standard defines numerous channels, which are referred to as “regulatory domain channels.” To form the mesh tree, an AP conventionally searches (e.g., passively and actively scans) across a full set of regulatory domain channels to find a parent AP to which the AP can connect to establish a backhaul link. The search can take a relatively long time to complete because of the large number of regulatory domain channels that have to be searched. The relatively long search time disrupts data flow to and from end clients connected with the searching AP, such as IEEE 802.11 wireless clients. Often, many of the regulatory domain channels are not in use in the vicinity of the searching AP. Thus, the AP wastes valuable time searching on empty channels for potential parents.